Lisbon Treaty ratification is complete

President Vaclav Klaus of the Czech Republic has signed the Lisbon Treaty, completing the process for the ratification of the pact, which creates a more powerful central government for the European Union. President Joé Manuel Barroso of the European Commission welcomed the ratification of the agreement, saying that it would allow for a much more powerful European presence in world affairs. "I think the transformational potential that is there-- the new external profile for the European Union-- will be felt immediately," he said.

The Lisbon Treaty, which alters the terms of the European Union, was signed in December 2007, after a previous effort to create a stronger European government, the proposed European constitution, was rejected by voters in France and Denmark in referenda held in 2005. The Lisbon Treaty was ratified by most individual member-states without popular referenda. It will go into effect on December 1.

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